


All our Dreams (Down the Drain)

by ValeriaBriar



Category: Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Beta Read, Blood and Violence, Gen, Kidnapping, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Whump, not a happy fic, short prologue for setup reasons
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-24
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-16 04:54:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,656
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28950723
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ValeriaBriar/pseuds/ValeriaBriar
Summary: A living hell is what awaits Varian when he is kidnapped by a gang calling themselves the Saporians. Despite not seeming to want anything from him, their increasingly deranged leader is determined to keep him alive and out of the way. Of what, Varian doesn't know. And why is even more of a mystery.Meanwhile, Corona crumbles at the edges under the growing threat of gang wars, crime lords, and a serial killer who can and will target anyone, and never misses. As the body count grows by the day, Rapunzel struggles to save both her city and her friend- before it's too late.
Relationships: Andrew | Hubert & Varian (Disney: Tangled), Eugene Fitzherbert | Flynn Rider/Rapunzel, Rapunzel & Varian (Disney)
Comments: 17
Kudos: 37





	1. The Visitor

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! Call me Valley.
> 
> I've been working on this story for a while now, and I feel like I've made enough headway to begin posting chapters. It will most likely be the first in a series set in this modern verse, so buckle up.  
> As a warning, this is not a lighthearted fic. So those of you who don't like what you see in the tags, turn away now. I'll be updating those and including chapter warnings as I go along.  
> This prologue is short, but I felt it was necessary for the setup of the story.  
> Finally, this was beta read by my friend Aevsfires, who wrote the lullaby sung in this chapter and is going to do an a capella recording of it. I hope to post the link to that along with the next chapter. We are currently sharing her tumblr so if you want to chat, head on over there.  
> Enjoy!  
>  **Warnings: comatose character, death/corpse mention.**

The faint, steady beeping of a heart monitor and the ever constant murmurs of the nurses and doctors were more than enough to mask the footsteps of an unwanted visitor. Cold eyes adjusted to the relative darkness of the private room, taking in the large figure unconscious on the bed, hooked up to countless humming machines, and a much smaller figure, curled in a chair next to the bed.

It was towards that smaller person she approached, her feet swift and soundless. The chair’s young occupant was in his early teens, black haired with a curious blue streak, small for his age, his observer noted. In the dim light from the window and door she could see dark shadows under his eyes and half dried tear tracks on his cheeks.

The woman glanced towards the man on the bed, an eyebrow raised in what might have been pity. She didn’t spare him more than a moment of her attention, before turning back to who she presumed was his son. Still here, even at this late hour, waiting for someone who didn’t seem likely to wake up.

How.... interesting.

Love. Family. She didn’t understand it. In fact, it rather disgusted her. But still, it could be useful, the woman mused, lightly brushing a pale hand with too clean fingernails through the child’s hair. He was so deeply asleep he didn’t so much as stir as she continued her absentminded combing. He continued to breathe, soft and slow and in perfect rhythm with that incessant beeping.

It would have been peaceful, if the scene hadn’t been so utterly depressing. Not that she cared.

The woman hummed to herself, the gears in her brain turning. She had everything she needed now. The child’s mere presence was proof enough of that. Desperate people did desperate things, especially, she thought with a roll of her eyes, for love.

But a sharp mind was such a precious thing to waste; she’d have to be careful. If she pushed too far, or made one slip up, everything she had planned would go down the drain.

The child moaned; she’d accidentally clenched her fingers onto his scalp.

Loosening her grip, the woman sighed and began to sing.

  
_Meet me by the riverside_  
_And makes sure no one follows_  
_For if we’re discovered_  
_She’ll drown us in the shallows_  
_Pray that you don’t see her handprint_  
_For it means you’re out of time_  
_She will bloody your reflection_  
_And leave you there to die_

When she was certain the boy was back in blissful dreamland, she let go of his hair and stepped away. She’d been here for too long already.

Her exit of the room was perfect; the sirens began going off the moment she slipped through the door. All eyes were on the muted television at the far end of the hall, no one even glanced at the inconspicuous woman casually making her way towards the stairs. Lines of text soared along the bottom of the television screen as she passed it, reporters jabbering rapidly. She pushed open the door to the stairs, her lips curled it what was almost a smile.

Across the great city of Corona, the corpse of Bloody Mary’s seventh victim was found.


	2. Snatch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It begins.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y’all! Sorry I took so long. I won’t bog you down with all the reasons this chapter was delayed, but I’m back, and I’m sick of looking at this so here *thrusts chapter at you.* 
> 
> Once again this was beta read by Aevsfires. And, as promised, the acappella recording of Meet me by the Riverside. The lyrics are in the description. (Let me know if the link doesn’t work- we’re keeping the video unlisted)  
> https://youtu.be/pZ0Zse7CkoY
> 
> Hope you enjoy the chapter! 
> 
> Warnings: language, mild violence, blood, and generally disturbing atmosphere, kidnapping.

“-and don’t come back here until you’ve gotten a good night’s sleep and eaten something. We’ll take care of your dad, honey. Just focus on not ending up in one of these beds yourself.” 

Varian didn’t reply to the nurse’s concerned words and shrugged her hand off his shoulder, turning on his heel and trudging off down the hallway. The chill of the hospital seeped through his hoodie, and he wrapped his arms around himself in an attempt to ward the cold off, stifling a yawn. 

Even though the sun had come up hours ago, Varian was still half asleep. The chairs the hospital provided really weren’t the best sleeping surface, and his back and neck ached from spending the night curled against the hard chair. He had been restless all night, flitting between light dozes and unnervingly vivid dreams of people singing and waking up from yet more nightmares. All in all, he’d gotten maybe six hours of real sleep in the past week. 

That was fine. He didn’t need sleep. He had to stay awake so when dad woke up he could be there. He couldn’t sleep, not when every time he closed his eyes he was walking through the door of his house to find dad slumped over the table, unnaturally grey and breaths rattling in his chest like he was inches away from- 

From there things had spiraled so quickly Varian was surprised he remembered any of it. Frantically calling an ambulance, the tense rush to the hospital, the agonizing wait as the doctors hurried to find answers and falling apart completely in Rapunzel’s arms when the news came back that they _didn’t know._

There was no explanation, no trace of a reason for why it had happened. There was no sign of illness or disease, so stroke or heart attack. Dad had just passed out and wouldn’t wake up. 

Varian bit his lip, too tired to cry but not awake enough to want to scream in frustration. He was a scientist; there was always a rational explanation for things like this but for the first time in his life he had no ideas. No answers. Just a comatose father and a hollow pit in his stomach that never went away. 

“-want me to call a ride for you?” 

Varian violently jerked out of his thoughts. His head shot up, and he recognized the entrance area of the hospital. He had been so absorbed in his head that he had somehow made it downstairs without realizing it. Blinking, he turned to the receptionist who had spoken. Camie, he was pretty sure, she had talked to him more than once in the past week, always offering to help. 

And right now she was looking at him like he was a hurt puppy. 

Not in the mood for a conversation, Varian shook his head and made to move towards the doors. 

“Kiddo, I know you’re not okay right now, but you shouldn’t be going out by yourself.” Camie tilted her head in the direction of the television on the opposite side of the waiting room. “I know you don’t like it when we sugarcoat things. They found another one last night. One of Bloody Mary’s victims.” 

That made seven now. 

A little over a week ago, Varian would have been shaking on the spot if he received this news. But now, he was too exhausted to care. His world had gotten infinitely smaller from the moment he found his father unconscious, and it didn’t have room for Mary. 

Shrugging, Varian started towards the exit. “I’ll be fine,” he rasped. Shit, he really should’ve gotten a drink before he said anything. 

Camie didn’t seem satisfied with his answer. “It’s not safe out there,” she called after him. When he didn’t respond, the young woman huffed. “I’m calling Rapunzel,” she declared. 

Varian stiffened at the comment, but kept walking. What Camie didn’t know was the phone buried in his pocket already had over six missed calls, four voicemails, and nine texts. And those were just the ones from Rapunzel. He wasn’t factoring Cassie and Eugene into this. They were just as worried but at least they knew not to smother him when all he wanted was to be left alone. 

It was even colder outside than in the hospital, and Varian shivered, pulling his hood up. The morning traffic had longed since fizzled out, so the street wasn’t too busy. His house was halfway across the city, but he really didn’t feel like going back up home, not when dad wouldn’t be there waiting for him. Maybe Cassie would let him crash at her place until he came back to the hospital tonight, she would give him the space he needed- 

His phone began to vibrate. 

Varian grit his teeth and yanked it free from his pocket. Rapunzel’s bubbly smile stared up at him from the bright screen. Might as well get it over with. 

“Hello?” 

_“Hey, Varian!”_ Rapunzel’s upbeat tone was far more forced than her usual cheer. “ _So Camie just called me and said you needed a ride. Where are you? I can come pick you up. Or I can send a Eugene if you’d rather it be him?”_

Varian sighed. “Rapunzel, I don’t need you to do that. I just want some time alone.” 

“ _Varian, it’s dangerous out there with everything going on. Just let me drop you off at home, ok? We don’t have to talk-“_

“All you _want_ to do is talk,” Varian snapped, his exhaustion getting the better of him. “I’m fine, I don’t need your help. I’m just going to go for a walk and then I’ll stop at Cassie’s for lunch, alright? Just leave me alone, Rapunzel.” He hung up before the guilt could get to be too much. 

He appreciated everything Rapunzel had done for him over the past few days, really, he did, but their definitions of what was too much varied drastically. There was only so much coddling he could take before it became unbearable. 

Stuffing his phone away again so he wouldn’t feel as tempted to call Rapunzel back and apologize, Varian turned onto a side street, away from the noise of traffic. He just needed a few hours to clear his head. Maybe once he was in a better frame of mind he could try and smooth things over with Rapunzel. Although knowing her she was probably already out looking for him anyway. The notion that she might ask Cassie to tell her fellow officers to keep an eye out for him briefly crossed his mind, but he brushed it away; not even Rapunzel would go that far. 

Hopefully he had bought himself a few hours of solitude. After that it would be back to the hospital for another sleepless night. 

The hairs on the back of Varian’s necked abruptly stood up. A chill that had nothing to do with the current temperature ran down his spine. Careful to not falter in his steps, Varian subtly shifted his head towards the side. 

Someone was following him. 

Ten feet away, a mountain of a man was casually strolling behind him, seemingly innocuous but the way he kept ever so slightly glancing in Varian’s direction sent his heart rate skyrocketing. Their eyes met for the briefest of moments. The man waved, grinning in such a friendly way that for a split second Varian was almost prepared to think he was just on edge from lack of sleep, but then a dark green SUV with tinted windows rolled out from an alleyway right next to him. 

Varian bolted. 

All sense of rational thought abandoned him, overwhelmed by sheer panic. He didn’t have time to think, just a primal instinct to _run_ keeping him from completely losing his head. He cast his eyes around the deserted street, looking for someone, anyone. He could hear the sound of the car behind him, gaining on him-

A hand closed around his arm. 

Varian screamed, whirling around only for the colossal man slam a meaty hand over his mouth. He priced at the thick fingers with his free arm, but the man just laughed, dragging Varian backwards to the sound of doors opening. 

Desperate, Varian bit down on the hand on his face and the grip slackened just enough. He wriggled free and sprinted forward, only for two smaller, but far harsher hands to clamp down on his shoulders. 

“ _Let me go!_ Hel-!” Another hand closed around his mouth and squeezed, pressing his lips into his teeth. Varian whimpered, squirming against the people holding him, but they held firm. The first man had vanished, replaced by a tall woman and a slimmer, but still muscular man who currently had Varian’s arms in a death grip. 

“Careful, Juniper, he’s a biter.” 

“Someone hold the door!” 

Flailing and writhing like his life depended on it, Varian fought his captors every inch as they manhandled him into the backseat of the car, and slammed the door shut. It the smaller space, they had less room to keep a grip on his wriggling body and Varian tore free of their grasp, flinging himself at the door. “Somebody help!” 

A fist collided with his head and Varian cried out, the pain distracting him just long enough to be wrestled back into the hands of the younger man. In no time, he was lying facedown on the backseat, his legs pinned down by the woman and his hands twisted behind his back, held in a grip tight enough to bruise. 

“Is he down?” 

“Just _drive,_ Maisie! Kai, the rope, now!” 

Varian screamed into the seat, pulling against the painful hold on his arms. The younger man tightened his grip in response. _“Shut it!”_

Varian flinched at the furious yell and paused in his struggle, gasping for air. That man who had yelled- he had to be the leader. And there were three others; the larger man, the woman, and a third man driving. Was that it? Tears welled up in his eyes as he weakly kicked his legs. Who were these people? 

The leader shifted Varian’s wrists to one hand while the other began winding thick, coarse rope around them. He was not gentle by any means, tugging the restraints almost tight enough to cut off Varian’s circulation. He didn’t falter even as Varian renewed his attempts to get free, and dug his elbow into Varian’s back as a warning. 

He jerked at Varian’s arms with a final tug on the rope, before moving his hand down to hold Varian’s legs. “Juniper, finish up for me.” 

The man was practically sitting on top of him with how he was leaning over Varian to keep him down. Varian arched his back to try and push him off, but the man didn’t budge. For a moment, anger overwhelmed the fear and Varian snapped. 

“Get the hell off me!” 

The rope knotted around his ankles. The leader released his legs and wrenched Varian into a sitting position, grabbing him by the chin. Varian’s head was forced up to meet eyes glinting with a dangerous gaze. 

“What was that?” The man said softly. It was far more frightening than his former yell. 

Varian shivered but didn’t back down, curling his bound hands into fists. “Let me go.” 

“I don’t think so.” 

“Let me _go.”_

“I said shut up!”

_“No!”_ And Varian craned his neck down and bit the man’s hand. Hard. 

The leader shouted, sounding more shocked than in pain, before his face twisted into a scowl and he grabbed Varian by the hair. His bleeding hand reached into his pocket, pulling out a wad of torn cloth. “Little fucker, thinking you can _bite me-“_

The sight and taste of blood had made Varian dizzy but he almost instantly realized what was coming. “No, don’t-“ 

The leader shoved the cloth into his mouth, packing it in roughly and spinning Varian around, closing his hand over Varian’s mouth again so he couldn’t force the rags out. He removed it a moment later only for the rags to be forced in deeper by a second cloth cleaving between Varian’s teeth, wrapping tight around his head and pulling sharply as the man knotted it.

Varian hardly even had the time to react before it was over, his screams of protest muffled by the gag. 

“Don’t fucking bite me,” the leader growled, shoving Varian off the seat and onto the floor of the car. Varian nearly choked on the foul tasting gag, drawing in panicked breaths through his nose as he curled into a ball on his side, tears blurring his vision. This wasn’t happening. _This could not be happening_. 

The car sped away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like this chapter could have turned out better, but alas, I’m an insomniac with no free time. Nevertheless, I hope you all enjoyed! Let me know what you think and I’ll see you soon! 
> 
> Ps, Angie and I are both on a break from tumblr, so for now here is the only place if anyone wants to chat. ❤️

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed! Chapters will hopefully becoming weekly, though it depends on mine and Angie's (Aevsfires) schedules.  
> Please leave kudos and comment to let me know what you think! I hope I can continue to entertain you.


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